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How It Works

PREPARE Portland’s IMPACT classes are experiential and hands-on. Students learn by doing. We teach practical self-protection strategies that are effective regardless of size, age, ability, or fitness level. We support people to persevere with positivity as their skills are developing.

THE BEGINNING. Each class begins with students and instructors sitting in a circle. The instructors will tell you about the goals we are setting for that day and for the course overall. In the circle you

Choosing A Self-Defense Course

Guidelines for Choosing a Self-Defense Course

The following are “Guidelines for Choosing a Self-Defense Course” from the National Coalition Against Sexual Assault Self-Defense AD-HOC Committee.

Look for more than physical skills. True self-defense is a set of awareness, assertiveness and verbal confrontation skills along with safety strategies and physical techniques. (At PREPARE Portland we call physical skills “self-defense” and the rest of these skills “personal safety”.)

Success Stories

Boss Boundaries

No, I didn't get to groin-kick anybody, but I did have a success of a different kind. I had my difficult boundary-setting conversation with my boss today. I definitely feel it went well! Before, when I have talked with him about this type of thing, I end up saying things like "You always respond in this hostile way" and "Why do you always take things the wrong way?" and so on. I believe I MAY even have called our workplace a dictatorship once (yikes). It always ends up with